She's Not His
by Kamon772
Summary: Aang finally gets his dream girl, but after a four year relationship and two years of marriage, everything changes. Aang is left broken and hurt. Can Toph help him get back to his old self? (Adopted from TomMaier)
1. Chapter 1

This was a fanfic originally started by TomMaier. However they placed the story up for adoption and wanting to try my hand at continuing it the story. i offered to adopted and was told that I could. Thus the first four and half chapters of this story are not are what TomMaier wrote before they allow me to take over for them.

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He ended a war. He got the girl. He redeemed himself for running away. All of this at the age of twelve. With all of these accomplishments, you think he'd be happy and full of relief, right? Well, he was. For six years he was. So why was he so angry now? Why had his heart been filled with such despair and sadness? Why had he run off from his problems once more, secluding himself in his old room in the Southern Air Temple? Because she wasn't his.

Six Years Ago

He stood out on the balcony of the Jasmine Dragon, looking out to the sky, admiring the peace he, they, had restored. Children had single-handedly ended the Hundred Year War. He sighed deeply as a smile came to his face. Did he expect their troubles to be over with? No, but he did expect them to be less severe. He heard footsteps and turned to see her walking towards him, maintaining an air of elegance she had never shown before. Her. He had fought for her, won it all for her. He knew how much hope she held for him, and there was no way he would lose. He couldn't let himself.

She came closer and closer with each step. She joined him in gazing out at the land of peace. Quick eye contact caused a faint blush to rise on their cheeks. Slowly, they turned to each other, both having the same feeling fluttering in their stomach. Hesitantly, yet fluently, their lips met. This wasn't like the kiss on the submarine the day of the eclipse, or the stolen kiss the night of the Ember Island Players' performance. This was deep, passionate, mutual. They both felt it deep in their hearts, just how right it all felt. With unspoken words, their relationship began right there. Grinning widely, hand in hand, the two headed back inside.

"Hey, everyone! Me and Katara are together!" Aang shouted in joy. There was a silence stricken in the room. Finally, someone decided to break it.

"It's about time!" Toph shouted, causing the Gaang and Iroh to break into hysterical laughter, embarrassment edging its was across the two newly coupled heros' faces. While the others were laughing and giving their congratulations, nobody seemed to notice the young earthbender slip away from the group. Aang was beaming. Life couldn't be any better right now. After a few hours, stories, and many cups of tea, Aang felt the call of nature, and found it best to answer in this case.

He began wandering the halls, following Zuko's directions. He found himself lost and near their rooms. "The Jasmine Dragon is a lot bigger on the inside then it looks. I wonder how-" he was cut off by the sounds of sobbing. Closing his eyes, he slammed a foot down on the floor. Using his seismic sense, he found a small body curled on the floor in a room two doors back. Slowly, he tip-toed back to the room and leaned an ear against it. The sobbing had been reduced to a soft sniffle. The room was silent, so Aang concentrated more, pressing further against the door. Suddenly, it fell open, spilling him onto the floor.

"What are you doing here, Twinkle Toes?" Toph asked in a hoarse voice. Aang looked over her, seeing the dried spots where the tears had been falling, her eyes were red and puffy. What surprised him the most was the slight quiver of her lip as she stared at him. He was speechless. He never expected to see his rough-n-tough earth bending teacher, and best friend in such a state. "Well?" she asked more sternly, breaking his thoughts.

"I heard you crying, so I figured I'd come check on you" he spoke timidly. "Toph-"

"First off, Twinkles, I don't cry. There was something in my eye is all. Second, even if I was crying, which I wasn't, I don't need help. Not from anyone." Her eyes narrowed into a glare. If looks could kill...

"Toph, you're so good at reading people's lies, but you're so bad at making them up." He took a step forward, grabbing her hands. "Toph, you're my best friend. You can tell me anything. What's wrong?" She simply kept her eyes glued to the floor. partly to avoid the question, and partly to hide the blush appearing on her cheeks.

"I don't wanna talk about it" she said in a deadpan tone. "It's something I have to deal with alone."

"Toph, I'm always here for you. And as long as I am, you never have to deal with anything alone" he told her. "Now, what is it?"

"Aang, please..." she used his real name to show she was serious. "I just want to deal with it alone..." All hope of figuring out the problem was gone the minute she used his name. He let go of her hands, letting them fall to her sides. His shoulders slouched down in defeat, eyes closing in frustration and understanding all at the same time. He sighed deeply.

"Toph, if you ever need someone, I'm always here to talk, no matter what time it is or what I'm doing. Understand?" she nodded slowly, still looking down. She looked so much like the small fragile child her parents thought she was in this moment. He was about to leave when he suddenly turned around, wrapping his long arms around Toph. He hugged her tightly and left. Blushing, Toph made her way to the bed in the room and simply sat, mulling over the events that had just occurred.


	2. Chapter 2

I would like to thank vash3055,RDFitzy,erasmusv,bazinga19,Lyra-Poisontee th,FanBonez, SuperTaang for adding this adopted story to their story alert

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Aang decided to keep the conversation he'd had with Toph a secret. She probably wouldn't like him blabbing about her crying. It'd probably end in me crying Aang thought to himself. As much as he tried, he couldn't stop thinking about it. Something had really upset her and he couldn't figure out what. Shaking his head, he dismissed the thought. He walked through the doorway, back into the main room and took his seat beside Katara. she grabbed his hand and smiled at him. He smiled back, forgetting his previous troubles.

"So tell me, young Avatar, what are your and Miss Katara's plans now that there is peace around the world?" Iroh asked with a warm smile. Aang put a finger to his chin in thought.

"Well, I haven't really thought about it. I guess I'd like to rebuild the Air Temples. They need quite a lot of work. So much of it's been destroyed..." he trailed off, a saddened look coming to his eyes, but he shook it off. "...and if anyone should rebuild the Air Temples, it should be me, right?"

"Well I hope you don't plan on doing it alone, right?"

Everyone turned to see Toph leaning against the door frame.

"You may have beaten the Loser Lord, but your earth bending skills definately aren't developed enough to rebuild entire temples" she added with her signature smirk. "Besides, you didn't think I'd be easy to get rid of, did you?" Aang smiled, happy to see Toph back to her normal self.

"But first I'm going to need you to help me. I was thinking about going back to the Southern Water Tribe. Maybe trying to rebuild the village into a city" Katara added.

"Yeah! If it used to be anything like the Northern Water Tribe, then it should be restored! Maybe Chief Arnook will even let you borrow a few benders to help out" he said with a smile. He leaned over and kissed her cheek. "Don't worry, we could do that in no time, sweetie" he said, causing a blush to come to her cheeks.

"A-HEM!" Sokka coughed, grabbing their attention. "Please, not in front of the big brother!"

"Well, it's not like they don't have to watch you and Suki swap spit every few minutes" Zuko chimed in. The two began one of their usual banters, causing everyone to roll their eyes, besides Iroh, who just laughed to himself, muttering something about youth. Katara made her way over to the two boys and began yelling herself, trying to disband the argument. Everyone just watched in amusement. Toph made her way over to Aang.

"Hey Toph! So, d'you take care of that thing?" he asked hopefully.

"Wha-? Oh yeah, that. Yeah, I got it under control" she said, faking a smile to him. "So, Twinkles, when's the big, fluffy train leaving for the Air Temples?" she asked.

"Well, I'm not completely sure how long it'll take to make everything how it used to be. I'd like to start and finish as soon as possible." He smiled at her. "It's not every day you get to rebuild a lost city" he joked. She let out a small chuckle.

"True. Which Temple are we startin' with?"

"Southern" he replied quickly. "My home. I'd like for that to be the first one done. It's gunna be wierd going back after-"

"Yeah, yeah, touchy feely stuff" she said, waiving her hand dismissively. "Well, listen here, Twinkle toes, there is no way I'm flying all the way there. Ground travel is necessary for this trip."

"Um, Toph...it'll take weeks for us to get there by foot. Plus, you can't get to the temples without a flying bison..." he spoke matter-of-factly.

"Well, the Fire Nation proved you wrong, didn't they?" She regretted the words as soon as she said them. She felt his heart jump and her hand shot up to her mouth. "Aang, I'm sorry..."

"Hey, don't worry about it. It's in the past right?" he said with a smile, losing it on her. "Sure I'm upset they're gone, but you're right anyways." She wasn't feeling any better. "Besides, if it really means that much to you, we can walk. But not the whole way there. What do you plan on doing in the mean time?"

"Well, I was thinkin'...maybe going to see my parents. I'd like to see if they'll change now, knowing I've helped in ending the war. I doubt they will...but you can always hope, right?" she asked with a smile. "If it's not too much trouble, do you think you could drop me off to Gaoling when you guys leave for the South Pole?"

"Yeah, Toph. No problem" he said smiling. "Whenever we get finished, I'll send you a letter telling you we're on our way. Deal?" he asked, holding his hand out. With a smile, she grabbed it.

"Deal." There was a big crash causing the two to cringe. Looking over, Aang saw that Sokka and Zuko were rolling around the floor, trying to fight, knocking over several flower pots in the process. He couldn't help but laugh.

Later that evening, Sokka revealed his plans to return to Kyoshi Island with Suki. Nobody was very surprised, considering how obsessed the two were with each other. Soon enough, it was night time and everyone was asleep in their beds. Well...almost everyone.

Toph was stirring in her bed, deeply lost in a lack of sleep. Her thoughts were keeping her awake. She couldn't figure out why Aang had chosen her over herself. Growling in frustration, she rolled herself out of bed and took a walk around the building, searching for the kitchen in hopes of finding a tea to calm her nerves. She easily found her way, being able to see better in the dark than everyone else can in the day. "Alright, now the hard part..." she began sliding her hands across the countertop in hopes of finding the tea pot, spark rocks, and tea leaves. "Aha" she shouted in a whisper, finding the rocks and leaves. "Now all that's left is the-" CRASH! "...kettle..." with just sliding her hands across the counter top, she'd knocked the pot straight to the floor. She froze as soon as it happened, listening and feeling for anyone's steps. As if on que, a pair of sleepy feet made their way down the hallway towards the kitchen.

"Toph?" a non-too graceful looking Suki asked. "What happened?" she asked, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Uh...hey, Fangirl. I couldn't sleep, so I came to make some tea...killing the kettle in the process."

"Clay or glass?" Suki asked.

"I think it was his new glass one...why?"

"Well, if it was a clay pot, you could have bent the shards either back together or at least off of the floor, but..." she walked over to the pantry, coming back with a broom and dustpan. "...since it's not, we'll have to sweet it up." She turned and lit one of the lanterns in the kitchen and began sweeping up the mess. Toph, not easily embarrassed, looked to the ground with red cheeks. Her blindness causing things like this to happen were one of the very few things that got to her. "Hey, you OK?" Toph just sat in silence. Letting out a sigh, Suki continued. "Toph, it's not your fault. You didn't know where it was." Silence. Toph just shuffled her feet like a child would.

"It's not just about the kettle..." she said shyly. Suki's ears perked at the vulnerability in Toph's tone.

"Well...what is it?"

"Suki...have you ever wanted...something...but couldn't have it?" Toph asked.

"I'm afraid I don't understand..."

"*Sigh* Well, say you...liked someone...but they didn't like you back? What would you do?"

"Oh...um...well how do you know he doesn't like you back?" Toph's mind replayed the vibrations she felt of the kiss.

"I just...know..." she said painfully, a tear sliding down her face. Suki picked up on the hurt in her voice. She was shocked. She'd never seen Toph, of all people, so vulnerable. Toph's hands began trembling slightly. Suki set down the dustpan full of glass and walked over to Toph, grabbing her shoulders and speaking gently.

"Oh Toph... I'm sorry" she said, pulling the smaller girl into her arms. Toph wrapped her arms around Suki, silently letting more tears fall. "Who is it?" she asked cautiously. Toph was silent, thinking about whether or not to tell her.

"Promise not to tell?" She felt Suki nodding. "A-Aang... I'm in love with Aang..." Suki's eyes widened and she pulled Toph away, looking her in the eyes.

"Aang?" Toph nodded with a quivering lip.

"Oh Spirits, Toph...today must've been terrible for you..." she nodded again. The two were silent for a few moments.

"Do you think it's because I'm blind?" she asked. Suki looked at Toph in disbelief.

"No! That can't be it! Toph, you embrace your blindness and get along with it so well that we forget you're blind ourselves. If anything, your blindness is admirable." A smile came to the young girl's face.

"You really mean that?"

"Yeah, I do. Besides, I don't think it's that there's any things he doesn't like about you. He's just got eyes for Katara is all. Sokka said he's liked her since he came out of the ice. So it's nothing you've done. OK?"

"OK...Suki? Thanks..." she said in almost a whisper. After a moment of silence, Toph swung her arm, her fist colliding with Suki's arm. "If you tell anyone about this talk, you'll wake up buried alive" she said with a smile. Rubbing her arm, Suki smiled back.

"You got it Toph. Now, let's make you that tea."

Toph found herself much more tired than before, figuring that maybe sharing feelings wasn't all that bad. She was now on her bed, eyes locked onto the ceiling, she was beginning to nod off to sleep when...

-KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!-

"Toph, it's time to get up!" Katara shouted into the young earth bender's room. Toph's eyebrows furrowed. A deep growling sound resonated in her chest. Her firsts clenched. The Jasmine Dragon shook.

"AAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGHHHHHH!"

Downstairs, Sokka slurped his entire bowl of noodles in fear and shock. His hands began to tremble.

"Who woke Toph up early?" he whispered.

(A/N: Think of the scene in Jurassic Park where Lex sees the shadow of the velociraptor in the cafeteria)

Covering her face with the pillow, Toph began kicking and screaming, cursing any of Katara's descendants.

"Toph?"

She stopped kicking around, his voice almost soothing her temper with its airy tone.

"Mmm?"

"You let it all out?"

"...mhm..."

"Good! Now come on downstairs. Breakfast is served. It's your favorite!" he said excitedly. She uncovered her face, an eyebrow raised in confusion. Proping herself up on an elbow, she faced the doorway.

"Twinkletoes, every food is my favorite..."

"Yeah, I know! Now come on, you wouldn't want it to get cold, would you?" he asked in a sing-song voice like she was a child, bounding down the halls. She chuckled at his behavior and rose out of bed. He was always able to make her do things nobody else could. Had anyone else come to her, she'd have earth bended them into next week. But not him...

Sleepily, she shuffled her feet towards the kitchen.

"Good morning, young Toph!" Iroh shouted with glee, a chuckle escaping him.

"Ughmornin'" was all Toph could muster up for the old man.

"Trouble sleeping?" he asked, handing her a bowl of noodles and a cup of tea.

"Yeah, something like that..." she answered, recalling the hours she'd spent tossing and turning the night before.

"Yeah, I'm pretty good at reading people usually, but your hair is the giveaway in this case" he said with a laugh. Her hand reached up, and indeed her hair was all on end like a large boarqupine. Sighing in defeat, she made her way to the table and sat with everyone else. There was a large silence besides the sound if a certain air bender slurping his noodles as if there was nothing at all going on. Sokka sat in his seat shaking while everyone else, save for Aang, sat nervously awaiting a reaction out of Toph.

"Well?" she asked, tapping her foot on the floor. "Why am I not asleep right now?"

"Weren't you listening yesterday?" Katara asked in a frustrated tone. "We're leaving at noon! How on earth didn't you hear us? You were standing right there!"

"Look, Sugarqueen, I've already got a mom, so whenever you're ready to stop trying to take her place, that'd be great" Toph said in a dismissive tone and began slurping her noodles loudly.

"Oh, no! Not this again" Sokka groaned, covering his ears and shaking his head. "Look, Toph. Yesterday while you were lost in the magical world of fruit pies," he said, glaring at Aang, who shrugged and smiled sheepishly, "we decided to head out this morning, hence the early rise. If we pack up and leave in an hour, we should be to Kyoshi by morning tomorrow" he said quickly.

-break-

Aang was shaken from his memory by a small pair of hands tapping on his head. He turned to see Momo sitting on his shoulder. He chirped quietly and tilted his head to the side. Aang let out a sigh he was not aware he was holding in. He reached up and scratched the small lemur's head.

"Well, looks like it's just the three of us now, Momo. You, me, and Appa." He looked away with a deepening sadness in his eyes. "The last living proof that the Air Nomads existed." Bending the air around him, he brought himself to his feet and began walking around the Southern Air Temple. He began reminiscing his time there as a child, and one of his earliest entrances into the Avatar State. Shaking his head of his memories, he made his way up to his old room to find it just as he'd left it, window open and all. Sighing once again, he walked across the room, closing the very window that changed his life forever. He sat himself down on his bed and stretched out his limbs. Letting out a groan of frustration, he lied himself down for what he knew would be another night of no sleep. As much as he tried, his thoughts would not stop wandering back to how things used to be.


	3. Chapter 3

I would like to thank

HoneyC and TomMaier for adding this adopted story to their story alert

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Aang stared at the ceiling, hands behind his head. He just couldn't believe how it had all fallen apart so fast. While he was out doing his duty, the world back home came crashing down. His mind absently replayed the memories once more.

-transition-

"Ugh..." groaned a severely air-sick Toph. "There's just no way to travel with you guys that agrees with my stomach..." quickly, she leaned over the side of Appa's saddle, releasing what little she had of her lunch left in her stomach.

"Don't worry, Toph, we're almost there! I can see Kyoshi now!" Aang shouted from Appa's head.

"Oh I can't wait to see all the girls again!" Suki shouted, almost shaking with excitement. "Oh I hope they didn't get lazy on me..."

"Come on, Suki. You're super scary sometimes. I don't think they'd be foolish enough to..." Sokka trailed off, noticing the death glare he was receiving from his girlfriend.

"Oh, so you think I'm scary now?" she asked, venom in her words.

"Well..." he began slouching and pulling up his collar in a poor attempt to hide. "Sometimes... but only when you're angry...?" Big mistake.

"I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW I'M THE MOST CALM PERSON AROUND HERE! I NEVER GET MAD ABOUT ANYTHING! AANG, DO YOU THINK I'M SCARY?"

"What? The wind's too loud in my ears!" he shouted back, figuring it best to avoid the conversation.

"Denial...the first sign that you have a problem..." slurred a very unhealthy looking Toph. Though she still managed to grin slightly.

"Toph, are you sure you'll be OK? You look terrible..." Katara asked softly, making her way over to the small girl.

"L-look, Sugar Queen, I said I'd be fine, so I'll be fine, got it?" she replied with a woozy tone.

"If you say so..." she replied in defeat.

"OK, guys, we're going down!" Aang shouted in excitement. There was a crowd gathering at the shore. Among them, of course, foaming mouth guy, screaming his head off, white foam flowing freely from his face. As Appa landed, Aang was the first to jump off (Airbender's advantage). He was quickly surrounded by swooning girls. There was a loud thud. Aang turned to see his earthbending teacher face down on the ground, not moving. With the help of a little airbending, he made his way out of the crowd and to her side.

"Sifu T! Are you OK?" he asked in a worried tone.

"Mmmm mm mhm mm..."

"Uh?" She lifted her face from the dirt.

"Much better now I can see" she said, allowing her face to fall back to the ground beneath her. Aang began laughing, before being crowded by a bunch of young girls.

"Aangy!" they shouted, nearly tackling him in the process.

"Hey girls!" he shouted with a grin. He looked over to see Katara looking on with a miffed expression. He mearly shrugged and airbent himself out of the crowd, landing with an arm around her shoulder. "Don't worry, sweetie. I've only got eyes for you" he said, adding a kiss on the cheek, making her blush furiously.

"Aang! Not in public!" she whispered, rubbing her arm nervously. He just chuckled, lookking up to see a glaring Sokka. He shrunk back behind Katara fearfully.

"Welcome Avatar!" a voice shouted. The Gaang looked over to see Oyaji walking towards them surrounded by the Kyoshi warriors.

"Commander Suki!" They shouted, surrounding Suki and embracing her tightly.

"Girls!" she shouted with a laugh. They all backed off and stood at attention.

"Oh, Suki, it's so wonderful to see you again!" shouted a wide-eyed, big smiled Ty Lee. "We all missed you so, so much!" she shouted with a giggle.

"Oh I missed you girls too. Have you been keeping up in your training?" Suki asked, raising an eyebrow. There was a chorus of groans throughout the warriors. One girl, Ji, stepped forward.

"Ty Lee's been running us ragged day in and day out. The only reason we wouldn't be in top shape is because of exhaustion" she said, glaring, along with the other girls, at Ty Lee. Ty Lee just blushed and rubbed the back of her head.

"Well I know if I didn't, then you'd probably have my hide, Suki" she said with a chuckle.

"Well duh!" she laughed. "Of course I would! You took over in the time we needed training the most. I'd be angry if it had gone any other way" she said with a smile. Oyaji made his way to the Gaang with a smile on his face.

"It is an honor to have you here on Kyoshi Island, Avatar Aang. To what do we owe the pleasure?" he said with a bow.

"Well, we're here to return your captain, and Sokka wants to stay here with you guys" he replied with a cheery tone. "We're making our way to the South Pole to rebuild it, since it's just kind of a little village now..." he trailed off.

"Excellent! So, how long can we be expecting you to stay?" he asked. Aang took a look from Oyaji to the crowd of fans standing behind him.

"Well..." Kartara suddenly rushed to his side.

"Unfortunately, we can't stay all too long. We have to leave today" she said quickly.

"What?" Aang asked, looking at her with pleading eyes, only to be met with a glare.

"That's a shame. Everyone here had a great time the last time you were here" Oyaji said.

"Yes, well, him being the Avatar, the job never stops" Katara said with a forced chuckle as she began to push Aang off. "Excuse us."

"Katara, why do we have to leave so soon?" he asked with a whine.

"Aang, don't give me that. You know what happened last time we were here. Your ego flew through the roof!"

"Relax, Sugar Queen" said Toph, making her way to her feet. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say I'm detecting a note of jealousy in that tone" she said, sporting her Blind Bandit smirk.

"I am NOT jealous!" Toph held up a foot, pointing at it.

"The feet do not lie, sister." She began wiggling her toes. "The feet do not lie." Blushing, Katara let out a frustrated growl and stormed off, muttering something to herself. Toph made her way over to Aang. "She's certainly easy to rile up, isn't she?" she asked, still smirking. Aang just let out a laugh.

"Yeah, and you love to be the one to start her up, huh?"

"Well, love is a strong word...but yes" she said, her smile widening. "I do love it."

"Melon Lord strikes again" and added with a smile. "You've certainly got an evil side to ya, Toph. Certainly glad you ended up on our side." She just laughed and punched him in the arm.

"Well, someone had to shape your jelly bones up to being the worlds third greatest earthbender."

"Third?"

"Duh, Badgermoles, then me, then you. I can't say I'm better than the origionals."

"Well, sometimes, the student can surpass the master. This might be one of those times" Aang said mischievously. Toph brought her hand up to her chin as if thinking.

"You know, you're right. After everything that happened the day of the comet, maybe the student has surpassed the mater." A hint of hope entered Aangs eyes... "Me, then the Badgermoles, then you." ...only to be crushed. Toph felt his heart rate change and turned around, walking away in a fit of laughter. Suddenly, the ground came up under one of her feet, causing her to stumble. After regaining her balance, she turned around, glaring at Aang. His heart rate spiked because he noticed her blind eyes locked onto his.

"Uh..."

She began walking closer.

"No…Toph, I'm sorry!" he raised his hands up defensively.

Her stomps grew harder.

"I-I didn't mean it!"

Now she was right in front of him, eyes still locked. Slowly, she raised a hand to his face. His heart rate was through the roof. He simply sat in anticipation for what was coming next when he felt two fingers close around his nose. She simply shook his head side to side, and released him, falling on the ground in a fit of laughter.

"Hahahha! You should have felt your heart! Hahaha You were so scared! Ahahahahaha! I think- I think I scare you more than Ozai did!" She continued laughing as Aang's embarrassment grew. He simply turned around and stomped away, face flushed with red. He soon found himself beside Sokka, who was looking at the many meats he'd been presented with by the people of the island. Sokka noticed Aang's face.

"Hey, what's with you?" he asked.

"Ugh...Toph...her jokes and pranks...sometimes it's just too much!" he shouted.

"Woah, relax buddy. Look, it's just who Toph is. Remember, it used to be me she' prank all the time. Now how do you think I felt?"

"Well, how'd you get her to stop?"

"I didn't. One day, she just did. I think it was around when me and Zuko went to The Boiling Rock. Maybe she'll just get bored with it. Just ignore it. Now, leave me to my meats" he said, rubbing his hands, a savage grin overcoming his face.

Aang turned to see Katara laughing with the Kyoshi warriors. A smitten smile came across his face. You did it he thought to himself. Won the war, redeemed yourself, and got the most beautiful girl in the world. As if hearing his thoughts, Katara looked over to him, a blush growing on her face.

The day went on in a peaceful manner. Celebrations were had, feasts prepared, gifts given and made, and eventually, the time came to leave, having given Appa all day to rest up. As the Gaang neared Appa, they began their goodbyes. Aang bowed to Sokka, who just grabbed him into a tight hug, whispering into his ear Take care of my baby sister. Toph was next. There was an awkward silence as either waited for the other to make the first move, knowing Toph wasn't big on affection. Sokka held out a hand. With a smile, Toph grabbed his forearm, and him hers. They pulled each other into one of Toph's very rare open displays of affection. They parted, not before a solid punch in the arm was given. Now was the most anticipated moment of the night. Katara stood before her older brother, her protector, her hero. Her eyes tearing up. Sokka stared deep into her eyes, remembering all of the good times they had together. Watching her grow up so fast after losing their mother. Tears began forming in his eyes as well. As if in at an unseen queue, the two lunged towards each other, hugging tightly. No words were said, the tears had said it all. They reluctantly parted and she turned towards Appa, climbing up his tail, taking place on the saddle. After many shouted farewells, and one loud 'Yip-yip', they were off, flying off into the night. Sokka stood, watching his baby sister, waving until she was no longer in sight.


	4. Chapter 4

I would like to thank

Lord Kamui,thisisme98,The3Ryans, and Goddess Of Darkness 97 for adding this adopted story to their story alert

Goddess Of Darkness 97 for adding this adopted story to their favorite story list

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They continued flying through the night, having rested Appa the entire day on Kyoshi Island. The Gaang took this opportunity to spend some much needed time together before their big goodbye. Sitting around the saddle, Aang was animatedly describing some of the things the kids at the Air Temples used to do when he was young.

"...And I give you my Avatar's Honor, it took a week to clean out all of the water" he said, putting a hand over his heart to pledge it to them. Katara and Toph began laughing loudly at the story.

"Wait a minute, if the Air Nomads just lived and went wherever they want, and technically don't own any land besides the temples, does that mean you're all just vagabonds, squatters, and hoboes?" Toph asked. Aang let out a laugh.

"Well, when you put it that way, I guess you could say that we are. But being a nomad, life doesn't really revolve around possession. It's about freedom and not having a set life" he said, voice filled with emotion.

"Yeah, that's something I've wanted to ask" Katara spoke up. "If nomads aren't supposed to be connected to anything, why do you have your glider? And a sky bison?"

"Well, you see, the glider..." he said, picking it up"...it a tool we use to fly, allowing us the most freedom we can achieve. As for the bison, it's more of a companionship. I don't see Appa as a possession. I see him just as I see you guys. He's my best friend" Aang said with a smile. "Monk Gyasto told me a sky bison is meant to be a friend even if nobody else will." A moment of comfortable silence passed as everyone took in the information.

"Did they marry?" Toph asked.

"'Scuse me?" Aang asked, surprised Toph had ask.

"The Nomads. When they found love, did they marry?"

"Well, normally, the boys are separated from the girls...so I'm not entirely sure. The only time I remember seeing any girls was the day we were to chose our bison..." he answered. "I don't remember seeing any couples either..."

"Must have been boring. No flirting, no romance, nothing" Toph answered. Both Aang and Katara looked at her with shocked expressions. "What? Despite my rough n' tough attitude, I'm a romantic at heart" she said. The other two just broke out into laughter. She merely shrugged and crossed her arms.

"So Toph, how do you think your parents will react when you return?" Katara asked. "If it's anything like last time, I doubt we're in for a very pleasant visit."

"Well, I'm a war hero now, and the world's greatest earthbender. They pretty much have no choice but to accept it" she said with a smile. "And even if they don't, it's not like I can't escape" she said, a mischievous smirk coming to her mouth. Aang and Katara chuckled. Katara let out a loud yawn.

"Man, I'm tired. I'm going to sleep. Wake me in the morning." She crawled over to Aang, giving him a kiss on the cheek before making her way to the back of Appa's saddle. Aang just sat there with a blush on his face. The two sat in silence until a light snoring was heard coming from Katara.

"How are you holding up?" Aang asked in a whisper.

"Wide awake. Just taking in the sights" she said, looking around the ocean. Aang let out a light laugh.

"You know, Toph, that's something I really admire about you. You're blind, but not only did you overcome it and accept it, but you joke about it" he said with in a whisper.

"Really?" Toph asked with a blush. She remembered what Suki had said about this. She blessed the spirits that it was night and he couldn't see.

"Oh yeah" he smiled. "You are very strong about yourself and know who you are. It's very admirable." Her cheeks just got redder.

"Thanks Aang. You know, you were my very first friend. Sure, I had maids and butlers who'd talk to me and keep me company, but nobody would really...connect with me. But you...no matter how much I pushed you away at first, you came through for me. Sure, it was as a teacher, but you stuck around even after we were done. You're the first person to see me for who I am, not what you see. " She wiped a tear from her eye. "Thank you." She suddenly felt two long arms wrapped around her once again. She gasped, feeling his warmth around her.

"You don't have to thank me, Toph. I only did what was right. The monks always told us to get to know someone before fully judging them." He smiled to her, even though she couldn't see it. Toph reached her arms around him and pulled him in close.

"Aang, you're my best friend, and I hope nothing comes between that" she said honestly. She pulled away reluctantly. A moment of comfortable silence came over them. Suddenly, Top reached out and punched Aangs arm. "Tell anyone I got soft on you, and you'll be-"

"Buried faster than I can blink... I know" he said with a chuckle, rubbing his arm. Another moment of silence. "Toph?"

"Hmm?"

"Well, I-uh, I never really apologized for...you know...the desert." He saw her flinch slightly. "I shouldn't have yelled at you like that... It's just...well, Appa's all I have from the Air Nomads. If I lost Appa...I don't know what I'd do..." he trailed off.

"Aang. It's OK. I know what it's like to lose someone close to you...I'm just glad we found him" she added with a smile. "Hey, Aang?"

"Yeah?"

"What do stars look like?" she asked reluctantly.

"Hmm..." he thought for a moment, tapping his chin with a finger. "Well, I don't know how to describe it. I mean, they're just millions of dots of light floating around in the darkness..."

"Oh, OK. Um..."she began, fidgeting nervously with the hem of her shirt. "What do I look like?" she asked, blush coming to her face. At first, Aang was puzzled. How do you describe to someone what they look like, if they can't see what you're describing? He brought his finger to his chin, tapping it in thought.

What does she look like? The more he thought, the more confused he became. I don't think I've ever really seen Toph's face without her hair covering it...he thought to himself.

"Well...I'm not sure" he answered, rubbing his neck nervously. Toph cocked her head to the side in confusion.

"What do you mean? I'm like, always around you" she spoke.

"Well, you always have your face covered by your bangs so...I'm not entirely sure. Maybe if you moved them out of the way?" Toph reached up to pull them back but failed to grasp all of it, hair falling back over her face. After several attempts, she let out a growl of annoyance and tugged on the string of her headband. Her midnight dark hair flowed over her shoulders and face, almost reaching to her waist. "Wow, that's a lot of hair" Aang spoke in awe.

"Yeah, yeah" she said. She took her headband and brought it up around her head, pulling back the loose hair from her face. "How 'bout now?"

"Well, the hair problem's solved, but I can't really see you. You have the moon behind you, so you're kinda eclipsing yourself right now" he said with a quiet laugh.

"Oh, OK" she said, shuffling herself to face him in the light. Slowly, she lifted her face to meet his gaze. Aang's eyes widened as he took in the first real look at his best friend. The slight pout of her lips, the point of her nose, the almost unreal look of her eyes, and how her hair seemed to almost cascade down from her head like a black waterfall. He felt a blush come to his cheeks as he took it all in.

"Wow... Toph, you're beautiful" he said in a whisper. Her eyes widened slightly and her mouth opened in surprise. She felt her cheeks heat up.

"R-really?" she asked nervously, almost like she was afraid it was some sort of joke.

"Yeah" he answered with a smile. "I don't know why you hide your face."

"What about me makes me beautiful?" she asked, genuinely curious.

"Well, you have a nice nose, round cheeks, umm...well, pink lips, and your eyes are...unique. I know it doesn't really make sense explained that way, but..."

"What about my eyes is unique?"

"Well, while most people have colors to their eyes, like mine are gray, Katara and Sokka's are blue, yours are like a white-green color. It's very nice" he said to her with a smile. With that, the blush only grew deeper.

"Thanks..." she said sheepishly. He just chuckled.

"No problem." Toph's heart was pounding in her chest. She was nervous at the intimacy of the moment. She had a question she wanted to ask, but she was too shy. After another moment of silence, she blurted out.

"Can I see you?" At first, Aang cocked his head to the side.

"Uh...how?" Nervously, she raised a hand and wiggled her fingers. A smile came to the airbender's face. "Sure, Toph." Cautiously, as if she thought he'd break, she brought her fingers towards his face, pausing just inches before making contact. She took in a sharp breath when he grabbed her wrist and guided it to his face. It's warmer than she'd thought it would be. Slowly, very slowly, taking in every feature, she slides her hand across his skin. She feels the curve of his cheek, mentally drawing a picture. Down to his chin, pulling it all into an image. Her thumb brushes his lips over a few times. What I'd give... she thought to herself. sliding up to his nose. It's smaller than I expected. Next. the eyes. She'd heard the color described as grey, though she wasn't exactly sure what it was, it was her new favorite color, behind green, of course. She moves across his forehead, a puzzled look coming to her face.

"Where's your arrow?" she asked. She's always heard everyone saying about his arrow, but now, as she moves her hands across his forehead, she is surprised to feel smooth skin. Aang just let out a light laugh.

"Well, Toph, a tattoo is just like a drawing on your skin. It's seen, but it's not something you can feel" he explained with a smile. Her mouth formed an 'o' shape of understanding.

"So...where is it?"

"Well, it comes up from the middle of my back, up over my head, and around like this" he said, bringing a finger to her forehead. She gasped at the contact, heat rising to her face. He traced the area where the arrow would be if she had one. As his finger came to the point between her eyebrows, a shiver ran down her spine. "And that's where it ends." She just sat still, in shock of the closeness they'd just shared. I have to tell him...she thought to herself. "Toph? You OK?" She looked up to him, swallowing the lump in her throat.

"Aang...I...look, I gotta..." I can't do it... "I gotta go to bed, I'm really tired."

"You sure?" he asked, slightly disappointed, still being wide awake.

"Yeah" she replied, adding a fake yawn. "G'night Twinkletoes" she said, lying down onto her side, back facing him.

"Night, Toph. Sweet dreams."

"Yeah...you too" she said, a tear sliding down her face.


	5. Chapter 5

I would like to thank

adrian cooper for adding this adopted story to their favorite story list

Author's Note: Most of this chapter is was TomMaier's incomplete fifth chapter that I finished. Thus after this one I will being the one writing the entire chapter based on the condition I was given when I asked to adopt this story from TomMaier  
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Feeling the sun's light shining down on her Toph was stirred awake as even though she was earthbender she did have a trait that was normally attributed to fire benders. That being that when the sun rose in the sky she was up along with in most case she was even up before Zuko was. Most of the Gaang however never knew this because once she got up she almost immediately went back to sleep.

This morning however was different then most others as she was still trying to get over how she chicken out the last night. That was almost perfect time for her let Aang how she felt. Unable to get back to sleep for this reason as whenever she did that moment combine with what would happen with her parents, kept her up. Since sleep was not something she could do anymore at least this morning there was something else she decided to do instead.

Short time later Aang awoke, squinting at the new light, welcoming another day. He always loved watching the sunrise, captivated by how the colors burst open across the sky. Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, he turned his head to see something he'd never thought he'd see in his life. Toph was awake before he was! She was seated at the front of the saddle, facing into the sunrise. If he didn't know better, Aand would swear she was watching it. He made his way up to her. Her legs were crossed and her breathing rhythmic, eyes closed. He raised an eyebrow. Poking her in the shoulder, he called her name.

"Toph?" One eyelid rose.

"Twinkletoes? What are you doing up so early?" she asked, easing her position a little more.

"Watching the sunrise. You?"

"The same thing."

"Uhh..." she let out a sigh.

"I may not be able to see, but I can feel, Airhead. I like feeling the sun warm up the world. It's very calming.  
Very..." she waved a hand, struggling to find a word.

"Serene" Aang finished, earning himself a punch in the arm.

"Yeah, serene. That's it. Join me" she told him, patting the spot beside her. "You know, that's another part of earthbending."

"Serenity?"

"No, staying calm. Staying focused. With your fancy little airbending, you can be carefree. Fire is passionate. Water is soothing. Earth is about being level." Aang scoffed at the irony.

"If earth's so level, why do you lose your temper so fast?" Another punch to the arm.

"Earth is level. However the earth has volcanoes that blow every so often and other places that erupt even more then them" she said

"Volcanoes do not blow out earth but magma and lava" Aang told her.

"They are both just molten rock though so maybe I can create that form of bending next. After all I am best earth bender around What would be more awesome then metalbending then the ability to bend molten rock as well" Toph said with her signature smile.

A scowl came to the Avatar's face before being replaced by a smile realize she was joking(he sure hoped she was at least). A groan was heard from the rear of the saddle. The third person in the saddle finally got around to getting up themselves.

"Ugh...you guys are up already?" Katara asked, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. "It's just past sunrise..."

"I'm always up this early" Aang answered with a laugh.

Katara then noticed that her blind friend was up as well and first thought she was still half asleep thus rubbed her eyes some more. As if they were playing tricks on her.

"What's your story, Toph? You usually sleep later than any of us" she said

"Correction" the earthbender began, raising a finger. "I always get up for the sunrise, I just go back to sleep after." Bringing her finger back down, she continued.

"Besides, it's hard to sleep with all of your snoring, Sugar Queen." Anger washed quickly over Katara's face.

"I do not snore!"

"'Fraid so, Sugar Queen" she said with a smirk.

"No I do not! Aang, tell her I don't snore" Katara said as looked toward her boyfriend whose hand began rubbing the back of his head while he seem to be avoiding eye contact with her.

"I…uh...well...you do...kinda snore...a little..." Aang told as he flinched, prepared for another outburst. Katara just huffed, turning away with her arms crossed.

"Oh come on, Katara don't be like that" he pleaded. She just turned away more.

"Ah, leave baby to pout, Aang. How much longer do you think it will take to get there?" Toph asked.

However he did not answer her at the moment as he was busy trying to get Katara to talk to him again. He really did not mean to upset her as he was rather shocked that she had not be told this already. Maybe that was because Sokka did as well so that was possibly why Katara was not aware she snored. Both her and her brother did so why would it effect either of them.

Not wanting to get in the way of the couple having their first official argument she just turned her attention back to the sunrise. Glad for once that she was inside Appa's saddle as she did not have 'see' the couple fight which then lead to Aang managing make up with Katara.

'The earth is level' Toph kept repeating to herself as continued to watch the sunrise

Though while the earth was level there also something always going on underneath the surface. Toph was trying mimic that herself wanting to seem normal on the surface but underneath even having to hear Aang doing touchy feeling stuff with Katara instead of herself was hard on her.


	6. Chapter 6

I would like to thank

HoneyC and Guest for reviewing this adopted story

.334,claudine1e,She-who-lols-at-dork-lords,lizzy12 1314 for adding this adopted story to their story alert

.334,JP Gosick,She-who-lols-at-dork-lords,lizzy121314 for adding this adopted story to their favorite story list

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Flying along at the in the relatively clear sky, Appa was no longer alone in the skies. There were the few ships that pass them by but it was very seldom that any did so. It was not that strange any more really as they were recover from what is now being referred to as the Battle at Wulong Forest. If the Fire Nation could take a simple hot air balloon and create a fully functioning fleet of warships within just a couple of months. Then getting some the ship that relatively still intact to fly again was too easy.

Though the few ship flying around at the moment were just one that Zuko had used to spread the news that the war was over to everyone from all the nations. The Earth Kingdom was huge so to end the fighting as quickly as possible. Ships were used to speed up the process and also prevent any possible misunderstanding from those not aware the war was over yet.

What did this have to do with anything you might asked. Truthfully it had nothing to do with anything related to those flying on Appa at the moment. The only reason one of the passengers the flying bison, that being Toph Bei Fong, was even thinking these things as the moment was because she was trying whatever she could think of to distract herself from the couple on board.

The couple that seem to forget that she was here with them. The couple that seem to making up for lost time as Katara had been dancing around Aang long enough it seem. Once he made his latest move it seem that it truly stuck this time around thus the current setting was the result. So Toph who because she could not 'see' at the moment could hear everything they were doing even better as result.

'This has to be one of the only times I have actually been glad to have my feet off the ground' Toph thought

If hearing them was effect her this much then it would have been even worse if she had been able to 'see' them as well.

Thus when ship past by them she took the chance to focus all her attention towards it and everything that she could think of about that did not bring any bad memories she had connected to those flying machines. She had near death experience the last time she was on one. Hanging there with her only lifeline being Sokka whose managed to grab not only her but pole keeping them both from pummeling to their death. Which would have happened anyway if not for Suki arrive to save them.

Once it was out of range, she used her hearing to try and pick on something anything that would use to continue distract her mind. That when she picked up the familiar sound of a messenger hawk coming towards them.

"Hey guys guess who coming towards us" Toph call out to them purposely not looking their general direction.

"We are flying on Appa and there no ships around for far was we can see. So just who can be coming towards….waiting how can you even tell someone coming. We are on Appa at the moment" Aang asked.

"I have incredible hearing too. I am just full of amazing traits that go far beyond my skills as a bender" Toph told him.

Aang did not notice that the whole time she said this that she was facing away from him as even when truly blind while on Appa. She would at least look in the direction that she thought the person she was talking to was.

Shortly after this short conversation between the two of them. Hawky, Sokka pet's messenger hawk landed in Appa's saddle. Becoming the center of attention the three them crowd around the hawk with Aang helping Toph over there. With Bei Fong girl glad that her bangs were covering most her face more the normal at the moment to hide her blush on her face at Aang's hand holding her own.

"What happened to Hawky anyway as one day he was just gone. Sokka spent a decent amount of time looking for him before I managed to convince him that he was just gone" Aang asked.

"You see we did not tell my brother that the two of us sent him to Toph's parents. Giving them a letter that told them exactly what was going on to try clear up the misunderstanding they had" Katara told her boyfriend.

"Hopefully they understood that I did not kidnap you or that the whatever letter you had sent was real" Avatar said.

"Like you could kidnap me" Toph said with a laugh.

"Yeah there no way Aang would be able to capture you more like the other way around. Also it not like it was love at first sight either as at first it just seem like you wanted to see the world. What better way to do that then to be the Avatar's earthbending teacher" the water tribe teenager said jokingly.

"Of course" Toph said weakly

It was not love at first sight but she did feel something towards Aang when they first met. Something that just cause her to be drawn to him in a manner unknown to her. This unexplainable feeling she had at first could possibly why she told him so much that night the three of them show up at her house. She had not even known him a full day yet and she had already told him about her seismic sense and how it worked.

Thinking back on it maybe her love for Aang was always there even before her crush on Sokka. It was possibly that as she started liking Sokka as her mind's way of keeping her thoughts away from those initial thoughts she had of Aang. Suki fully joining the Gaang just cause to become aware of them as she might have even trying connecting with Zuko. That why she wanted her own life changing trip with the firebender that everyone else had. Life changing in that she would either get over her feeling for Aang or something else would change in her life. No such luck as he just seem to brush her off as she talked about her life (not in rude way as they were suppose to looking for Aang at the time).

"So what does the message say" she asked curious as to what her parents might have to say to her.

"Why do you think there is a message" Katara said posing her own question.

"Well Hawky is a messenger hawk that implies he is a hawk with a message. I am sure he did not come all this way to simply greets us for no reason at all" Toph replied back.

Feeling a little embarrassed, she looked to Aang to see if there was one to be read. Which in deed was and it was quite the interesting one indeed.

"Seem that your mother wants to meet us not at your home in Gaoling but somewhere else. I do not know how but she apparently knows that we are coming" he said.

"Well I am a war hero and its possible that the news that I wanted to come back home got back to my parents somehow. There were probably people trying to listen in on the Jasmine Dragon that day after all you had the world's greatest earthbender there" she said

"Oh there was also you and the new Fire Lord as well" she added as she might not being able to see but had feeling Aang would left out.

"Anyway according to this message there a lot she want to talk to you about and she can not wait to start" Katara said having taken from her boyfriend to look it over herself.

"Also the place she talking about does not even seem that far from where we are now either. There are direction on listed in regard on how to get there" Aang said while airbending himself to Appa's head in order to give him the new directions.


	7. Chapter 7

I would like to thank

Denise530 and SailorCC for adding this adopted story to their story alert

Denise530 and eternal nothingness for adding this adopted story to their favorite story list

eternal nothingness for adding this adopted story to their favorite authors list

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Feeling that Appa had come to a stop and started to descend. Something that was not that hard even for Toph to know. After all if the sky bison stopped moving there was only a number of reasons why he would do that. One of them being that they had arrived where her mother wanted to meet her at rather then the main house in Gaoling. Toph had planned the moment she heard the sky bison feet hit the ground she threw herself over the side the saddle. Landing firmly on the ground with a speed that shocked even Aang who still busy help Katara.

"This is good enough. You two should just go on head with that plan of yours" She said.

"Are you sure as we can stay a little while at least until you get to this house as I can not see now nor could we see it from the sky either. Just this area where your mom wanted to meet us" Katara asked.

"That is true as we should at least see you all the way there" Aang offered.

"So you guys do not trust me" Toph spoke out.

"Of course we trust you" both Aang and Katara said rather shocked that their friend would even say something like this. This how Toph had acted when she had first joined them and were both relatively shocked this was surfacing again.

"Then everything will be fine as Avatar and Master Katara. You can go long along as we Bei Fong can handle ourselves. Also me and my daughter have a lot of catching up to do which I rather do with just the two of us" Poppy said as she stood nearby a Ostrich horse carriage.

"Are you sure, Toph?" Aang asked her

"Do not you have something else to do as all I wanted at moment was a ride home. I am basically home now so you can go" she told him

"This seem kind of fast though as can not we at least give off Appa to give a formal goodbye" Katara said.

A chill went down her spine on that she hoped no one had seen as she did not want to 'see' the happy couple right now. Hearing them was almost too much for her to bear and she did not want to risk how actually being able pick up everything else she would if the two of them were on the ground. The full spectrum of things she would have to if the couple set foot on the ground thanks to her seismic sense.

"You guys must have thought I gotten soft because that one group hug I started back at Kyoshi Island. Come on the both of you know that I am not for all this touchy feeling stuff nor emotional tearful goodbyes. Really you are going to be seeing me again soon anyway as Twinkletoes is going to need my help. I am right" his Earthbending teacher said.

"Yeah that is true but…." Katara started but Aang placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Let just go as Toph is right after all. We are going to be seeing her again after not too long. This is not like with Sokka as you know the plans we have" her boyfriend told her.

However what the couple did not notice was that the entire time Toph had her back to them as she was talking to them like that. Normally even if she could not normally see them she would have at least been facing the direction of Appa.

"Just go already" she said waving them off as she started walking towards her mother.

The next thing she heard was Appa talking off and while she was so busy trying to re-level herself as the dread felt over possibly having 'seeing' Aang and Katara rather then hear them would have been too much for her. She did not notice the smile that was on her mother's face as she lead her daughter in the carriage.

"So mom where is dad" Toph asked curiously

Focusing she did not notice her father anywhere nearby. She would have guess that he would have been out here to greet her along with her mother yet he was not here.

"Your father is away at the moment" Poppy replied.

"I'll take you heard about all I managed to accomplish" the Bei Fong girl said rather proud of herself.

Why would not she seeing as she done so much since leaving home to travel with Aang and the others. Sure the start might not have been the best as she did run away from home but it turned out to be for the best. Their home,Gaoling, had managed to avoid getting caught in the war however how long would that have lasted. Especially after Azula, who was still in her right mind at the time, and her at the time two friends managed to do what no other Fire Nation person not even Uncle had. She took down Ba Sing Se.

"Of course I have as who has not heard of your accomplishments" Poppy told her.

"Master Earthbender, teacher of the Avatar, fought your way towards the Earth King to uncover the plots of Long Feng, creator of metalbending, almost single handily took down a fleet of Fire Nation ship Battle at Wulong Forest. These are just some of them want to me to continue" she asked.

Toph merely shook her head as her mother seem to be very supportive of her now. At least she sounded like it. Her mother did not seem to be lying as she would have picked up on it. Mostly because for some reason the floor of this carriage was made of rock. Why Toph did not question as she was just so pleased that her mother seem to accepting her for who she really was rather then that false image she gave them for years. This cause Toph to start telling her mother about the number of things that she had been through that was not widely known as there was far more that happened to them then what the publicly known stories told.

Eventually the mother/daughter pair got to the house that Poppy had told Toph they would be stay yet still would not tell her why here instead of their home in Gaoling. That change the moment she set foot on the ground and immediately noticed the difference.

"I can not see" Toph exclaimed shocked and while she would want to admit it a bit scared.

The sound of something locking could be heard behind her however it was not something she had ever really heard before.

"Welcome back my wayward daughter" Poppy said as turned towards her child.

"Mom what's going on here .Why can not I see anything. This is stuff its not wood so why is not my bending working" she asked.

"It's a substance known as plastic. Very versatile one at that which can be used in number of ways and should not be something that bendable cause its not completely natural. I consider using wood as that would have worked just as well. However you have already shown that you could bend metal when pushed into a corner so what to say that wood would not be the same thing now" she said to her.

Backing away yet because she could not see she bumped into stand and her something crashing to the ground. Hearing the sound of the crash the thought that this could possibly be something that she use came to mind.

"Do not even think about as that vase you just broke is not something any bender can use as the liquid you probably feeling on your feet is not even water. This whole house is completely devoid of anything that anyone other then an airbender would be able to bend" Poppy informed her.  
Toph went to open her mouth yet no words came out as she could not fully process what was happening here right now. This was beyond what even her worse expection of what could have happened after meeting her parents, in this case just her mom again.

"Truly did you think that only Azula was capable of telling lies to you. You told me about the Day of the Black Sun invasion but just seem to leave out that little bit of information about what happened" Poppy told her walking towards her "My dear daughter you are still nothing more then a child after all. You may have fought in a war and won but that was because you did not have to deal with too many people like Azula, when she was still in her right mind at least. Getting you to lower your guard and taking advantage of you was all too easy. Then again I never really expected much from you anyway"

Trying to keep herself together as her own mother had just told that not only was not she proud of her but in fact ashamed and did not really expect much from her in the first place.

That why we are here now in this house. This were I will personally oversee you being turned into a proper Bei Fong lady whether you like or now Poppy told her.

There was number of things run through Toph's mind at the moment. She wander what happened to her dad, why her mom why acting like this, how did she know about something that should not be public knowledge, just what did this 'proper Bei Fong lady' her mother wanted to turn her into was exactly. Some many question she had but did not seem to be getting any answer from any of them. The only thing Toph knew as that she was in some serious trouble that she somehow need to escape from here but did not know how at the moment.

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Author's Notes:

This chapter was my attempt to set up something I have in mind for Toph. However these things will not appear for some time storywise as I thought why should Aang be the only one that has issues later on in this story. Toph should have some of her own that while she is trying to help him, he is in turn trying to help her recover from her own. So as a result, Toph is not going to show up in the next couple of chapters and the aftermath of this chapter will not be fully immediate or explain when she does.

In regards to how Poppy was in this chapter. The idea behind this was that Lao is usually one that shown as the parent that just does not want to see Toph for who she really is or just flat out rejects it and want her to force her to fit his image of her. So I thought why not have it be Poppy instead of him.


	8. Chapter 8

I would like to thank

SweetestKay and Guest for reviewing this adopted story

Dria24567 and Deus Orion for adding this adopted story to their story alert

dria24567,Deus Orion, and Matthew42 for adding this adopted story to their favorite story list

Dria24567 for adding me to their Favorite Author List  
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Landing in the his childhood home, Aang looked around the place as it was the first time he had set foot on these ground since first coming all those months ago with both Katara and Sokka. It was when he was still unaware of the fate of his people and the results of him running away after learning he was the Avatar.

Could he have stopped Sozin back then he would never know as although he almost lost the fight with his grandson, Ozai. He had learned all four different styles of bending and even energy bending in order to keep from killing him. Would he had been able to do the same with Sozin who would have been enhanced by the power of his comet with possibly only his airbending. Maybe he could but it probably would have ended with him killing Sozin while in the Avatar State resulting in Ozai, Iroh, Azula, and even Zuko never being born. After all how could any of them exist as Sozin's own son Azulon(their father and grandfather) was not born until AFTER Sozin's Comet passed and his genocide of the Air Nomads was over.

Things could even result in other ripple effects across the world as while the Hundred Year War was not something he really wanted to happen. The world he was currently living in was a result of that war. Who to say that merely killing Sozin or Ruko stopping his old friend when he had the chance was the correct course of action in the long run. Things could have been so much better however they could have also been so much worse as well.

"Aang? Are you okay?" Katara asked with a worried expression as she looked at her boyfriend who was starting to worrying her with his staring off into space.

"I am fine, Katara" he told

Katara. She might have been from the Southern Water Tribe. However the effects of the Fire Nation's Hundred Year War strenched across the entire world to all the Nations. Katara could have been born earlier, had a different father, or quite possibly never been born at all in world where there was no war started by Sozin at least.

For all that he had lost as result of this war what he had gain might not have been a replacement for them. Nothing could ever really truly replace what he had lost but as long he was alive the ability to start over. The ability to find a new family and change the world was always there.

"Anyway can you show me more your home. The last time well you know…." Katara said as recalling how the only real thing that came from their last visit seem to be Momo. The winged lemur was hanging back with Appa rather following Aang though.

Agreeing Aang began showing her around the temple showing off everything that he could safely. This was because of the disarray cause by a hundred years of disuse and number of other things. Gyasto's remains and those of the others they found had buried during their last trip here as he really could not leave them there like that. It was tough for him but it was them paying their paying their respect to the dead even though Katara and Sokka told Aang he did not have help at the time.

"This place must have been amazing back when you lived here, Aang" Katara said as she was lying in the bed

"It was" he told

"Its going to be again as this place can be restore after all I am here to help and so will Toph once she done visiting her parents" his girlfriend told him.

Some time later…

Aang was busy with Katara cleaning out the weeds from some more sensitive areas of the temple. In place where the area was made of stone and something similar. That where Aang used his firebending to just burn them to a crisp and Katara quickly sweep them up with her waterbending. There were a lot of weeds everywhere after all. Why would not there be as a hundred years is long time allow them to grow after all.

When they were not busy working on restore the temple, they were busy making out and doing other things as a couple. The places where Aang would need to use earthbending to fix he was waiting for Toph to arrive to even truly get started. The two of them were depending on her to tell them the fill extend of the damage done during the Sozin's campaign against the Air Nomads and the century that followed. This temple was special to Aang and he did not want to do anything that harm it even more.

"Look at this way, Aang. Once we get done with this temple there are only two and half temple to fix up" the water tribe girl told him.

"Two and half ? Do not you mean three" he said

"There are people living in the Northern Air Temple already. Restoring should be easier as result plus we would have The Mechanist and Teo. Moving his stuff to a new area should not be that hard as he might have already done himself" Katara explained.

There was a knock on the window as he opened to find that there was a messenger hawk at the window. Opening it and letting them in, Aang looked out the expected messenger though it was from Ba Sing Se which had apparently started using the messenger hawk having got a hold of some during the brief time they were under the control of the Fire Nation.

"I am guessing someone want you come to them" Katara said.

"Yeah it seems the Earth King wants my help fixing the holes in the wall. Both of them, the one cause by the Da Li themselves and the other one cause by Iroh. It also states he wants help in dealing with the people as well" Aang explained to her.

"Go on as you are still the Avatar so this is to expected. I'll be fine as we have enough supplies to last until you get back and if you going to take longer then merely send Appa back" his girlfriend said.

"Why do not you come with me as then you would not have to stay here at least. Our house in Ba Sing Se might still be there so you could stay there at times you can not come with me" her boyfriend told her.

"What about Toph as we do not know when she going to come or even how. So I am just stay here just in case she arrives while you are gone. Also there some thing here I can do on my own to get this place restore as much as possible without Toph's help" she told him.

"Okay then I will be back as soon this issue is over" the Avatar said going to get Appa and then heading off to the Ba Sing Se. 


End file.
